Activities on sterilizers with ethylene oxide and formaldehyde

Activities on sterilizers with ethylene oxide and formaldehyde

In Germany, occupational safety and health (OSH) is embodied in and shaped by numerous laws, regulations, and ordinances with a view to ensuring the safety and health of workers in the workplace. The “Technical Rules for Hazardous Substances” (TRGS) reflect the state of technology, occupational safety and health and occupational hygiene as well as other definite knowledge relating to activities involving hazardous substances including their classification and labelling.

Recently the TRGS-513 “Tätigkeiten an Sterilisatoren mit Ethylenoxid und Formaldehyd” (Activities on sterilizers with ethylene oxide and formaldehyde) has been revised and describes the legal requirements and, what is more important in this context, the conditions under which these carcinogenic substances can be handled safely. These substances cannot be entirely substituted, so all targets of protection (patients, environment, workers) are taken into consideration.

The concrete conditions are especially and concisely described in “Anlage 5 TRGS 513 : Verfahrens- und stoffspezifische Kriterien (VSK) bei der Anwendung von Niedertemperatur-Dampf-Formaldehyd-(NTDF)-Verfahren zur Sterilisation im Gesundheitswesen.“

So far this TRGS 513 is in German only.

More information
Published November 30, 2017
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Carcinogen(s) involved:

Sector(s) involved

About this case
Company:
BAUA - The German Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
Country:
Germany
For more information please contact:
Hazardous substances Committee (AGS)
General facts

Facts about cancer-causing agents:

  • The direct costs of carcinogen exposure at work across Europe are estimated at 2.4 billion Euros per year.
  • Every year, about 120.000 persons get cancer from exposure to carcinogens at work
  • Annually more than 100.000 people die because of work-related cancer.
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